Man in critical condition after being hit by elderly driver

Monday

Jun 29, 2009 at 12:01 AMJun 29, 2009 at 6:10 AM

An 84-year-old man attempting to cross Main Street in Melrose on Sunday morning at a crosswalk was struck and critically injured by a car operated by an 86-year-old Malden woman, according to Melrose Police, making this the fourth accident in the state this month involving an elderly driver and resulting in serious injuries or death.

Daniel DeMaina

An 84-year-old man attempting to cross Main Street in Melrose on Sunday morning at a crosswalk was struck and critically injured by a car operated by an 86-year-old Malden woman, according to Melrose Police, making this the fourth accident in the state this month involving an elderly driver and resulting in serious injuries or death.

Melrose Police Chief Mike Lyle said about 10:27 a.m., the Melrose Police Department “received several calls regarding a motor vehicle accident in the area of 449 Main St., involving a pedestrian.”

Lyle said that upon arrival, police found an unidentified elderly male lying on the ground with serious medical injuries. Melrose Fire Department personnel responded, evaluated and transported the victim by ambulance to Massachusetts General Hospital.

Melrose Fire Capt. Ed Collina said the department also received a call at about 10:25 a.m. reporting that a pedestrian had been struck by a vehicle in front of Mexico Lindo Restaurant at 449 Main St. in Melrose, and that Melrose Engine 3, Ladder 1 and Cataldo Ambulance responded, finding the victim — who was identified as Francis Blomerth of Medford — lying against a parked car.

“It looks like he might have been thrown 10 or 15 feet,” Collina said. “He landed perpendicular to a parked car.”

Blomerth had “massive” head injures, was bleeding profusely and semi-responsive, Collina said. The Ladder 1 crew and Cataldo medics treated Blomerth, loaded him into the ambulance on a backboard and began advanced life support (ALS) treatment, transporting him to Massachusetts General Hospital with “serious life-threatening injuries.”

Melrose Police Det. Lt. Paul Norton told the Free Press on Monday morning that the accident is under investigation by both Melrose Police and the State Police, adding that Melrose Police have only released limited information thus far through a press release. He confirmed that Blomerth was in critical condition at Mass. General. While Norton said it was unclear whether Blomerth had been in the nearby crosswalk, marked by the reflective yellow pedestrian signs that dot Main Street’s crosswalks, Chief Lyle later indicated that was the case.

“We have reason to believe he was in the crosswalk,” Lyle said. “All indications point that he was in the crosswalk and there was an attempt to cross the street. There’s that traffic pedestrian cone ... it was clearly in the middle of the roadway that day. The sun wasn’t shining, so that wasn’t a factor on the operator. We [are looking] at a number of things.”

Asked about the driver’s speed, Lyle simply said, “The State Police is going to take time to get back to us with facts and figures, estimated speed and things like that.”

While charges have not been filed yet against the driver, who has been identified as Virginia Nelson of Malden, state Executive Office of Transportation spokeswoman Ann Dufresne told the Free Press that Nelson’s license had been revoked Monday morning, based on a complaint filed by Melrose Police.

“When there is a serious action either involving serious injury, death or an indication that the driver needs to be tested for their driving capability, such as an accident where they plow into a building and mistake the gas pedal for the brake, we take a license immediately,” Dufresne said. “It’s typically based on a complaint taken out by the local police department. That’s what we have here.”

Indeed, Chief Lyle later told the Free Press that Melrose Police “filed an Imminent Threat form [to the RMV]” to “suspend the license of that operator.

“The nature of the accident was certainly a factor to suspend the license,” Lyle said. “Obviously we haven’t finalized the investigation to complete the charges. We have impounded the vehicle to go through the vehicle completely. She won’t be able to drive until after the investigation.”

Lyle said Nelson has a right to appeal the imminent threat filed with the registry. He added that Nelson holds an active driver’s license and that the vehicle she was driving was properly insured.

Free Press attempts to reach Nelson, as well as the Blomerth family, were unsuccessful.

This accident is the fourth involving an elderly driver and victims with serious injuries in the past month. Two weeks ago, a 4-year-old girl in a crosswalk in Stoughton was allegedly struck and killed by an 89-year-old Canton woman, who has been charged with motor vehicle homicide by negligent operation. Earlier this month, a 93-year-old man mistook the gas pedal for the brake and barreled into the entrance of a Wal-Mart in Danvers, injuring six people, and a car driven by a 73-year-old woman went over a curb and injured seven people in Plymouth.

Sen. Brian Joyce, D-Milton, has sought for at least the last two years for a law that would require Massachusetts drivers 85 and older to pass a road test and eye test every five years to have their licenses renewed. Currently, drivers are required to renew their licenses every five years and to take an eye test every 10.

Melrose resident Anne MacGillivray, the Silver Legislature representative for Melrose and Precincts 3-6 in Wakefield and the Silver Legislature’s current speaker, has previously called Joyce’s bill an “unfair and unjust bill of discrimination” (“‘Greatest Generation’ says no to driving test,” Free Press, March 27, 2008).

On Monday, MacGillivary told the Free Press that some elderly drivers may have medical or other conditions that require retesting, but instead of targeting only seniors, automobile insurance companies and the Registry of Motor Vehicles should review driving records and seek to retest any driver — regardless of age — who has had frequent accidents.

“I’ve never had an accident, I’m a senior and I have a good driving record,” she said. “I feel somebody like me should have the freedom of not feeling I’ve been singled out. I’ve been driving for 40 years. To group us all in is unfair, unless they want to have some kind of a rule where everybody, young and old, gets tested every five years … I think if someone is in their 30s and has a history of three or four accidents in the last two or three years, it wouldn’t be a bad idea to test them too.”

MacGillivary added that other seniors have written to her, as a Silver Legislature representative, complaining of the media highlighting the age of elderly drivers when there’s an accident (“Seniors: Let MacGillivray know who you are,” Letters, Free Press, June 25).

"They feel there’s so much publicity on their age, but when there’s other accidents, they don’t give the age,” she said.